Management vs. Leadership

Post by David Mead

There's a difference between management and leadership. Management is about doing stuff - the day to day operations needed for the tactical things to get done.

Leadership, on the other hand, is about people. It's less about what you're doing and more about who you're being. It's how you show up for your people. It's being available to handle the human side of things.

When we are constantly worried about the tactical - what deadlines to hit, what metrics to reach, what projects to ship - we have less time to take care of the people who make all those tactical things happen. As Simon shares, leaders aren't responsible for the results. Leaders are responsible for the people who are responsible for the results. And without the support of our people, it's us who feel like we have to take more responsibility for the tactical because we know it's our butts on the line.

What if we focused more of our energy on leading and building relationships with our people so that we could trust them and they'd trust us? Then we could empower them to take accountability for the tactical, which would open us up to do what we do best as leaders - look to and plan for the longer term future.

If you're in a position of leadership in your organization, consider this question, "What percentage of my time do I spend managing vs. leading?" If the leading percentage is smaller, imagine what would be possible if the numbers were reversed.

Comments

Brilliant - this is something I always stated and believed! Thank you for the validation. Managers use checklists to verify tasks were completed; checked the clock to ensure everyone showed up on time, etc. Leaders create the space that allows people to perform their work. And when this happens people work harder and are more loyal. I believe in hiring well, once that happens there is no need for checklists or clocks.

This is where most Managers in leadership positions fall short. When the focus is more on the fruits of our labor and not the people we the risk of losing good, who end up going elsewhere. People matter; when we put people first and lead them into leadership positions we receive far more production and a far better environment to be a part of.

On the nose. When I ask myself what I prize most, I know that I'd rather have a leader than a manager. Working with students every day, I know that everything we do and say is part of a learning process. Letting go of the need to be "right" is difficult, but approaching everything we do with the goal of learning something (even if it's what doesn't work) frees them to think and take risks...and frees me to allow them to be far more amazing on their own than if I had my thumb on them.